1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to chairs, and more particularly to a foldable leg rest applied to a chair for allowing the legs of a sitter to stretch horizontally.
2. Description of the Related Art
Chairs allow people to sit thereon and support weights of sitters. Chairs are varied in structure and function. With reference to FIG. 9, an electric car seat or a massage chair substantially comprises a seat 90, a backrest 91, a folding frame 92 and a drive mechanism. The seat 90 has a front end and a rear end. The backrest 91 is pivotally connected to the rear end of the seat 90. The folding frame 92 is pivotally connected to the front end of the seat 90. The drive mechanism is mounted between the seat 90 and the folding frame 92. With reference to FIG. 10, the drive mechanism is actuated to pivot the folding frame 92 relative to the seat 90 to construct a foldable leg rest. Therefore, the legs of a sitter can be stretched and placed on the folding frame 92.
The drive mechanism includes a pivot arm 93 and an actuator 94. The pivot arm 93 has a front end and a rear end. The front end of the pivot arm 93 is secured to the folding frame 92. The actuator 94 is a motorized fader having a cylindrical body 941 and a telescopic rod 942. The cylindrical body 941 is pivotally connected to the seat 90. The telescopic rod 942 is slidably received in the cylindrical body 941 and is extendable and retractable relative to the cylindrical body 941. The telescopic rod 942 has a front end extending from the cylindrical body 941 and pivotally connected to the rear end of the pivot arm 93. The folding frame 92 is pivoted forward to be unfolded when the actuator 94 is operated to extend the telescopic rod 942. Likewise, the folding frame 92 is pivoted backward to be folded when the actuator 94 is operated to retract the telescopic rod 942.
However, the length of the telescopic rod 942 is limited because the actuator 94 is disposed within the space between the seat 90 and the folding frame 92, such that the actuator 94 cannot provide sufficient stroke to pivot the folding frame 92 to a horizontal plane in which the seat 90 lies. Accordingly, the legs of the sitter cannot be horizontally stretched on the folding frame 92, thereby reducing sitting comfort.
To overcome the shortcoming, the present invention provides a foldable leg rest that allows the legs of a sitter to stretch horizontally.